After the 2020 season, Denver Broncos general manager John Elway will have just one year remaining on his contract.
Elway signed a five-year contract extension in 2017 that runs through the 2021 season. The quarterback-turned-executive will turn 60 in June.
Since he joined Denver’s front office in 2011, Elway has helped the Broncos reach two Super Bowls, winning one of them. Overall, the team has gone 85-59 under Elway. A large chunk of those 85 wins (50) came when Peyton Manning was the team’s quarterback.
Denver has failed to return to the playoffs since Manning’s retirement in 2016 but the team appears to be trending in the right direction. Elway has had three consecutive draft classes that — on paper — have been brilliant.
It remains to be seen what will happen when Elway’s contract expires in 2021. There were rumors in 2017 that Elway might join the Los Angeles Rams’ front office but respected sports columnist Woody Paige seems to believe retirement might be a more likely scenario.
Paige wrote before the draft that Elway is “determined to drive the Broncos to return to glory (or, at least respectability), then ride off into the sunset.”
In an interview with The Gazette‘s Paul Klee two years ago, Elway indicated that he still has the drive that’s required to be a GM in the NFL.
“I’m still enjoying what I’m doing with the Broncos,” Elway told Klee. “I’m still very, very driven by it. I want to get us back to where we’re competitive year-in and year-out.
“That’s the fun part of it. It’s no fun to go 5-11. Winning, that’s fun.”
Denver hasn’t had a winning season since Elway made those remarks but it was probably fun to watch quarterback Drew Lock go 4-1 as a starter in 2019. If Lock can help the Broncos return to the playoffs in 2020, Elway will undoubtedly be pleased with the roster he has built.
If Denver makes the playoffs in back-to-back years leading up to 2022, perhaps Elway will be content to “ride off into the sunset,” as Paige said. We’ll enjoy the next two seasons before worrying about that.
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